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Eriogonum microthecum Dwarf-shrubland Alliance | Western Ecology Working Group of...
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Name: Eriogonum microthecum Dwarf-shrubland Alliance Reference: Western Ecology Working Group of... Description: This minor dwarf-shrubland alliance occurs in portions of the Snake and Imnaha river canyons in Idaho and eastern Oregon and Washington. Precipitation primarily occurs in the winter as snow or rain. This moisture is stored in the soil profile and utilized during the typically dry summers. Stands are typically found on highly weathered basalt outcrops in the canyons. Sites are very hot and dry, occurring on moderate to steep slopes with southern or western aspects. Soils are very shallow, coarse-textured, and well-drained with a high percentage of rock fragments. The soil surface has a high cover of pea-sized gravel and sand with cobbles. Parent material is colluvium and residuum derived from a unique, highly fractured, hydrothermally altered basalt lava. Chemically, this substrate is alkaline with low organic matter and high cation-exchange capacity of calcium and soluble sodium. Vegetation included in this alliance has a sparse woody layer that is dominated by the dwarf-shrub Eriogonum microthecum. Some stands may have Eriogonum strictum instead of, or in addition to, Eriogonum microthecum. The herbaceous layer is also sparse and composed of a relatively even mixture of forbs and grasses. Other characteristic species include forbs, such as Physaria oregona, Achillea millefolium, Chaenactis douglasii, Erysimum capitatum (= Erysimum asperum), Oenothera caespitosa, Phacelia heterophylla, Polygonum douglasii, and the grass Pseudoroegneria spicata. Moss and lichen are nearly absent, likely because of the instability of the slopes. Exotic species, namely Bromus tectorum, often make up a significant portion of the vegetation cover in these stands.  Accession Code: VB.CC.27521.ERIOGONUMMICROT Plot-observations of this Community Concept: 0
	Party Perspective according to: NatureServe (organization) Perspective from: 26-Nov-1997 to: 01-May-2019
	status: accepted This Community's Level: Alliance This Community's Children: [none]		Names:   Translated: Slender Wild Buckwheat Dwarf-shrubland Alliance   Scientific: Eriogonum microthecum Dwarf-shrubland Alliance   UID: HIGHER_CLASS_UNIT.2.125290 NatureServe Explorer   Code: A.1107